Lake Charles

Lake Charles is the fifth-largest city in the US state of Louisiana, located in the southwestern Calcasieu Parish along the Calcasieu River. The city was incorporated on 7 March 1861 as Charleston, and it was renamed "Lake Charles" in 1867. The area became a center of petrochemical refining, gambling, tourism, and education, and it was a popular tourist destination due to the abundance of lakes and beaches. In 2010, the Lake Charles metropolitan area had a population of 194,138 people.